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Hydratases involved in nitrile conversion: screening, characterization and application.
H Yamada1, S Shimizu, M Kobayashi
1Division of Applied Life Sciences, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Japan.
Chemical Record (New York, N.Y.)
|March 15, 2002
Summary
Microbial nitrile hydratase (NHase) enzymes offer efficient, mild bioconversion of nitriles to amides. This discovery provides novel synthetic routes and environmental solutions, exemplified by industrial acrylamide production.
Area of Science:
- Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering
- Green Chemistry
- Industrial Biotechnology
Background:
- Enzyme discovery offers novel synthetic routes and environmental solutions.
- Microbial nitrile hydratase (NHase) catalyzes nitrile to amide conversion under mild conditions.
- NHase is crucial for industrial production of acrylamide and nicotinamide.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the potential of microbial nitrile hydratase (NHase) as a catalyst in organic synthesis.
- To highlight the industrial application of NHase in commodity chemical production.
- To elucidate the structure-function relationship and gene regulation of NHase.
Main Methods:
- Screening of nitrile-related enzymes for synthetic applications.
- Characterization of NHase at the molecular level.
- Analysis of gene expression regulatory systems for NHase improvement.
Main Results:
- NHase enables efficient conversion of nitriles to amides under mild conditions.
- Industrial production of acrylamide represents a successful commodity chemical bioconversion.
- Molecular characterization provides insights into enzyme function and regulation.
Conclusions:
- NHase is a valuable biocatalyst for sustainable chemical synthesis.
- Understanding NHase structure and regulation can lead to process optimization.
- Bioconversion using NHase offers environmentally friendly alternatives for chemical manufacturing.